This is a special episode in which I reflect on the last year of the Reconciliation Roundtable podcast and thank all listeners for spending time with me and my guests, exploring how we can be agents of reconciliation in a time and a place where doing so often seems to be beyond the pale.

This podcast is possible because of your support, so if you enjoy listening please share it with others and make sure to subscribe and leave a review on your favorite platform.

If you would like to find more content like this, please visit my website at www.markbeckwith.net, where you can listen to more episodes (and read episode transcripts), read my blog, and sign up to get weekly reflections in your inbox. I also explore the themes of this podcast further in my book, Seeing the Unseen: Beyond Prejudices, Paradigms, and Party Lines.

This episode of the Reconciliation Roundtable podcast was edited, mixed, and produced by Luke Overstreet.

Wilk Wilkinson joins me to discuss his journey from political apathy to toxic political engagement, followed by the epiphany that since led him on a mission of bettering the world, one attitude at a time, by charting a course toward understanding, bridging divides, and fostering a community where wisdom prevails over discord.

We talk about how this mission shapes Wilk's work with Braver Angels and the Derate the Hate podcast. We also discuss Wilk's personal faith as a Christian, his commitment to individual liberty as a conservative, and his views on gun ownership and safety. This timely conversation emphasizes the importance of engaging with diverse perspectives and finding common humanity with others, even when we disagree.

To hear a prior conversation between Wilk and myself where we go deeper into "braving the gun divide" - you can listen to the Braver Angels podcast episode of that name here.

• Derate the Hate Podcast
• Wilk's Opinion Blog
• Facebook (@DerateTheHate)
• X / Twitter (@DerateTheHate)
• Instagram (@derate_the_hate)
• LinkedIn

The Reverend Canon Dr. Stephanie Spellers is one of the Episcopal Church’s leading thinkers around 21st-century ministry and mission. She is a priest, author, speaker, and friend who currently serves as the Canon to the Presiding Bishop for Evangelism, Reconciliation, and Creation Care.

She is the author of Radical Welcome: Embracing God, The Other, and the Spirit of Transformation as well as The Episcopal Way; Church’s Teaching for a Changing World and Ancient Faith, Future Mission: Fresh Expressions in the Sacramental Tradition. She has worked for many years at the intersection of practice and reflection, renewal and justice. Her latest book, The Church Cracked Open; Disruption, Decline, and New Hope for Beloved Community is an important response to the question, “What will The Episcopal Church look like over the next 50 years?”

Prior to accepting her current position at the Church Center, she taught at General Theological Seminary, served as a Canon in the Diocese of Long Island, and founded The Crossing, a ground-breaking church within St. Paul's Cathedral in Boston. Canon Stephanie spent five years as Chaplain to the Episcopal Church's House of Bishops, co-chaired the Standing Commission on Mission and Evangelism, and directed new ministry initiatives for the Center for Progressive Renewal.

Canon Stephanie began her career as an award-winning religion journalist in Knoxville, Tennessee; a job she took after graduating from Harvard Divinity School, where she studied religion and social change movements. She later graduated from Episcopal Divinity School and, in 2018, received an honorary doctorate from The General Theological Seminary for her contributions to the Christian faith and the wider Church. She grew up in Frankfort, Kentucky and maintains close ties to her extended family there.

• The Church Cracked Open
• Facebook (@sspellers)
• Instagram (@revspellers)